Status
Available
Call number
Genres
Collection
Publication
Algonquin Books (2008), Edition: First Edition, 325 pages
Description
My Father's Paradise is Ariel Sabar's quest to reconcile present and past. As Ariel's father, Yona, travels with him to today's postwar Iraq to find what's left of Yona's birthplace, Ariel brings to life the ancient town of Zakho, telling his family's story and discovering his own role in this sweeping saga. What he finds in the Sephardic Jews' millennia-long survival in Islamic lands is an improbable story of tolerance and hope.
Media reviews
As long as the focus stays on Yona Sabar, a last of the Mohicans for Kurdish Jews, the book is graceful and resonant. It falters only when the author extends too far beyond this narrative, imagining a bit too colorfully village life in Zakho or obsessively self-analyzing his dissonant relationship
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with his father. What holds our attention is that last bar mitzvah boy of Zakho, who, by helping to save Aramaic, managed to find a rare equilibrium between past and present. Or, as his son elegantly puts it, he "sublimated homesickness into a career." Show Less
Awards
National Book Critics Circle Award (Finalist — Autobiography/Memoir — 2008)
Dayton Literary Peace Prize (Shortlist — 2009)
Christian Science Monitor Best Book (Nonfiction — 2008)
Language
User reviews
LibraryThing member break
Couple of weekends ago I went to Los Angeles for a family event. It's a five hundred miles drive, so bit of a trek. It happened to be there that I started to read Ariel Sabar's My father's paradise, a son's search for his Jewish past in Kurdish Iraq." The first chapters of the book are set in Los
If the objective of reading is being transferred with the help of imagination to distant places, one would never go then this book reached its goal. I have a vivid picture now how life in the town of Zakho in the Kurdish part of Iraq, at the beginning of the 20th century might have been. That picture includes the peaceful coexistence and respect of Jews and Muslim and the few Christians. It also includes the use of Neo-Aramaic, a main focus of the book. That's the language of the Jews, who lived there since exiled from Eretz Yisrael two thousand years ago. That's also the language that the author's father became the researcher, professor and preserver of. We learn a great deal about the language as that's one of the central features that kept the Kurdish Jews unique during their long exile. Since they were lifted an masse to Israel in the early 1950's the younger generations lost the language, just like most of second and third generations immigrants n any country. Thus Yona Sabar, the linguist father, is fighting against time to save as much of it as possible.
The book is usually described as part history, part biography and part memoir. These are all true, although the opinions are divided about the value and quality of the latter. The New York times suggest that the "obsessively self-analyzing his dissonant relationship with his father" is a drawback. I thought it was an important element of the book as the guilt derived from this tension rove the author to write the book the first place. It's true that this was not the most exciting part, because others worked through this kind of distrait already, in a more literally valuable way, but it didn't disturb me.
Reading he book made me think that maybe I am the person who is distant yet close enough to my own father's generation to write his (hi)story. It is a different story, but worth preserving.
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Angeles (where the author grew up), while most of it is thousands of miles away, in the mountains of Iraq, where his ancestors, including his grandparents grew up and In Israel, where his father grew up after the age of 12. I liked this kind of coincidence, me being in Los Angeles, because it helped me immerse myself into the book.If the objective of reading is being transferred with the help of imagination to distant places, one would never go then this book reached its goal. I have a vivid picture now how life in the town of Zakho in the Kurdish part of Iraq, at the beginning of the 20th century might have been. That picture includes the peaceful coexistence and respect of Jews and Muslim and the few Christians. It also includes the use of Neo-Aramaic, a main focus of the book. That's the language of the Jews, who lived there since exiled from Eretz Yisrael two thousand years ago. That's also the language that the author's father became the researcher, professor and preserver of. We learn a great deal about the language as that's one of the central features that kept the Kurdish Jews unique during their long exile. Since they were lifted an masse to Israel in the early 1950's the younger generations lost the language, just like most of second and third generations immigrants n any country. Thus Yona Sabar, the linguist father, is fighting against time to save as much of it as possible.
The book is usually described as part history, part biography and part memoir. These are all true, although the opinions are divided about the value and quality of the latter. The New York times suggest that the "obsessively self-analyzing his dissonant relationship with his father" is a drawback. I thought it was an important element of the book as the guilt derived from this tension rove the author to write the book the first place. It's true that this was not the most exciting part, because others worked through this kind of distrait already, in a more literally valuable way, but it didn't disturb me.
Reading he book made me think that maybe I am the person who is distant yet close enough to my own father's generation to write his (hi)story. It is a different story, but worth preserving.
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LibraryThing member frisbeesage
This is the history of the Kurdish Jews told through the story of one family's past. While mostly true, it is told in the form of historical fiction with details and conversations invented to support the known facts.
This book is an easy and beautiful way to educate yourself on a little known piece
This book is an easy and beautiful way to educate yourself on a little known piece
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of history. While I did occasionally get bogged down in the parts about the general history of the region, I loved the specific history of Sabar's father and his family. Show Less
LibraryThing member curlie
My Father's Paradise is neither a typical memoir nor a typical epic. The family-centered historical tale spans generations and oceans as Ariel Sabar investigates as only a reporter can and pours out a story as only an invested family member can. The riveting and sometimes heart-wrenching stories
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about Sabar's extended family frame a beautiful tale about his own relationship with his father. If you do not already know a lot about the historical background of Kurds in Iraq, Sabar provides plenty of interesting historical information to keep you informed without dragging down the pace of the book. I thoroughly enjoyed reading My Father's Paradise and hope that Ariel Sabar's future works are as engaging. Show Less
LibraryThing member deusvitae
A wonderful and well-written narrative of a son who chronicles the life of his father, one of the last generation of Kurdish Jews and a scholar in the Neo-Aramaic field. It is a touching work designed to show honor to his father, honor that he did not always provide. The work provides an excellent
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complement to the legacy of the father: while his father focused on preserving the knowledge of the language of his ancestors, his son here preserves the father's story and the remarkable circumstances that led to his successes. An excellent work that enlightens the reader regarding an oft-forgotten people in a well-known part of the world. Show Less
LibraryThing member zibilee
My Father's Paradise is Ariel Sabar's captivating account of the plight of the Kurdish Jews in Iraq, as well as the story of his family's history. The book shifts from the social and political aspects of the culture and it's struggles to maintain the legacy of it's heritage and language to the tale
I came to this book with little familiarity of the region and it's people, and felt that the author excelled at highlighting the reasons and ramifications of the Jews eventual emigration to Israel from Iraq, and the adversity that they faced in their new home. It was distressing to realize that this modest group of people were hated and marginalized in a place that they hoped would be a haven and sanctuary for them. Against all the odds, Yona Sabar achieved what most had never dreamed of: success and notoriety as a professor, author, and language consultant. Though, sadly, he could not accomplish this in Israel. After moving to America, his success came with struggles to assimilate with its culture. These passages were deeply affecting and stirring. I felt heavyhearted reading about his loneliness and isolation in a new country, so alien from his own.
The author's relationship with his father was portrayed with unflinching honesty and true feeling. It seemed it was not always easy to have a father who was so different from everyone else. But the very things that initially created distance between father and son later came to be the things that brought them together. It was a poignant reversal that closed the generational gap. As the author searched for meaning and understanding in his father's past, his father became the touchstone of his ethnic identity.
This book ran the gamut of emotions: there was pleasure in the tale of the aged storyteller of the village, who used his stories to enlighten his people as well as attain his own ends; there was sorrow in the story of a missing relative who was lost in the sands of time; and there was anger in the subjugation of a noble people who struggled with their new circumstances. Though there was much sadness, I ultimately found this story as one of hope.
Another thing I liked about this book was the conversational style in which it was written. The information was not dumbed down for the audience, and neither was it too complicated to be accessible. I felt as though I got to know the author as well as the subject through his use of a welcoming style of journalistic approach. The book includes black and white photographs as well as facsimiles of noteworthy documents. I found this extra detail very inviting. It was gratifying to be able to see some of the people who I was getting to know.
This was a very pleasing book. I learned a tremendous amount about a culture that was previously unknown to me, and the people inhabiting the pages were so detailed and their motivations were so amply described that I felt as though I could have been right there with them, comforting them when they cried, and sharing the sound of their laughter. Yona I found to be particularly enjoyable. He was funny and self-depreciating, as well as being intelligent and kind. His quest to save the Aramaic language was deeply impressive. I admired the skillful handling of these subjects by the author, and would definitely recommend this book to others.
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of how his father, Yona, and his family lived in Zakho, a small town in Kurdish Iraq, and their eventual departure. But instead of being a quaint saga of a family's lineage, it is rather a homage to his father and the accomplishments he has made in the preservation of a people that are fast disappearing. I learned to love Yona Sabar, just as his son and students did. He humbled and awed me with the diligence that kept his people's language alive.I came to this book with little familiarity of the region and it's people, and felt that the author excelled at highlighting the reasons and ramifications of the Jews eventual emigration to Israel from Iraq, and the adversity that they faced in their new home. It was distressing to realize that this modest group of people were hated and marginalized in a place that they hoped would be a haven and sanctuary for them. Against all the odds, Yona Sabar achieved what most had never dreamed of: success and notoriety as a professor, author, and language consultant. Though, sadly, he could not accomplish this in Israel. After moving to America, his success came with struggles to assimilate with its culture. These passages were deeply affecting and stirring. I felt heavyhearted reading about his loneliness and isolation in a new country, so alien from his own.
The author's relationship with his father was portrayed with unflinching honesty and true feeling. It seemed it was not always easy to have a father who was so different from everyone else. But the very things that initially created distance between father and son later came to be the things that brought them together. It was a poignant reversal that closed the generational gap. As the author searched for meaning and understanding in his father's past, his father became the touchstone of his ethnic identity.
This book ran the gamut of emotions: there was pleasure in the tale of the aged storyteller of the village, who used his stories to enlighten his people as well as attain his own ends; there was sorrow in the story of a missing relative who was lost in the sands of time; and there was anger in the subjugation of a noble people who struggled with their new circumstances. Though there was much sadness, I ultimately found this story as one of hope.
Another thing I liked about this book was the conversational style in which it was written. The information was not dumbed down for the audience, and neither was it too complicated to be accessible. I felt as though I got to know the author as well as the subject through his use of a welcoming style of journalistic approach. The book includes black and white photographs as well as facsimiles of noteworthy documents. I found this extra detail very inviting. It was gratifying to be able to see some of the people who I was getting to know.
This was a very pleasing book. I learned a tremendous amount about a culture that was previously unknown to me, and the people inhabiting the pages were so detailed and their motivations were so amply described that I felt as though I could have been right there with them, comforting them when they cried, and sharing the sound of their laughter. Yona I found to be particularly enjoyable. He was funny and self-depreciating, as well as being intelligent and kind. His quest to save the Aramaic language was deeply impressive. I admired the skillful handling of these subjects by the author, and would definitely recommend this book to others.
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LibraryThing member mcna217
"My Father's Paradise" by Ariel Sabar is really two books in one.
The first story is the author 's attempt to understand his family (especially his father Yona) by investigating their shared history. While I enjoyed this part of the book, this portion covered very familiar themes like
The second story, however, was new to me. It told of the mass relocation of Kurdish Jews from Iraq to Israel. This portion of the book was fascinating and unfamiliar. Sabar uses his skill as a reporter to increase the reader's understanding of a very important event in history, the creation of the Jewish state. While I have read previously on this subject, it has never been from the perspective of a non-European Jew. I will continue to look for other books like this to read, as Mr. Sabar has really sparked an interest in me to learn more about this time and place in history.
I would recommend this book wholeheartedly to anyone whose interests include Middle Eastern history or Judaism. I am very thankful I had the opportunity to read and review this book.
The first story is the author 's attempt to understand his family (especially his father Yona) by investigating their shared history. While I enjoyed this part of the book, this portion covered very familiar themes like
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reconcilation, personal discovery and assimilation. I seem to have read many books on these topics recently. The second story, however, was new to me. It told of the mass relocation of Kurdish Jews from Iraq to Israel. This portion of the book was fascinating and unfamiliar. Sabar uses his skill as a reporter to increase the reader's understanding of a very important event in history, the creation of the Jewish state. While I have read previously on this subject, it has never been from the perspective of a non-European Jew. I will continue to look for other books like this to read, as Mr. Sabar has really sparked an interest in me to learn more about this time and place in history.
I would recommend this book wholeheartedly to anyone whose interests include Middle Eastern history or Judaism. I am very thankful I had the opportunity to read and review this book.
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LibraryThing member jeanie1
The cultural schism between father and son is the backdrop of a fascinating story combining history, geneology and the struggle of a family caught between the traditions of Kurdish Iraq and the fast paced world of the 21st century. The father, working to preserving Aramaic, the language of Jesus
I loved this book. The writing style is fluid and takes the reader through centuries of history, bringing to life ancestors and characters that populated Zakho, the Kurdish town in Northern Iraq. and the newly formed state of Israel. There is even the mystery of the long lost sister, the little "Thumb girl" who was given to a wet nurse and never returned.
I have no doubt that this book will make the New York Times best seller list. It contains all the elements of a good read. Ariel Sabar is to be commended for bringing to life a great story and learning to appreciate his father and the work that has consumed his life.
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and his "L.A." son, a journalist, find common ground in their inherited past as the son struggles to come to terms with their differences.I loved this book. The writing style is fluid and takes the reader through centuries of history, bringing to life ancestors and characters that populated Zakho, the Kurdish town in Northern Iraq. and the newly formed state of Israel. There is even the mystery of the long lost sister, the little "Thumb girl" who was given to a wet nurse and never returned.
I have no doubt that this book will make the New York Times best seller list. It contains all the elements of a good read. Ariel Sabar is to be commended for bringing to life a great story and learning to appreciate his father and the work that has consumed his life.
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LibraryThing member Litfan
My Father's Paradise is the author's exploration of his family's roots. Ariel's father, Yona, left his town of Zhako in Kurdish Iraq as a child, in a mass exodus of thousands of Kurdish Jews to Israel. From there, as a young adult, Yona emigrated to America. Ariel explores his own relationship with
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his father, as he traces the roots of his father's past and explores the culture and language of Zakho. Ariel shares his own struggle with wanting to be a modern American teenager and having disdain for his father, to finally, as he grows up, wanting a closer relationship with his father and a connection to the past. The reader sees glimpses of life in Zhako, Israel, and America. This is a very worthwhile read that speaks to larger themes of how culture survives across continents and borders. Show Less
LibraryThing member clik4
Once again, I am thrilled to have been selected by LibraryThing to review a pre-publication book: My Father's Paradise by Ariel Sabar. It is an interesting book on many levels. It is the story of a young man's perspective on his immigrant father. His father, Yona, was a much loved son whose family
It is also the story of a son's repentence. Viewed through a son's eyes however, Yona was a backward, poorly dressed, poorly spoken old man who lived in the past. Ariel was embarrassed by his father's language, his odd habits, his broken down car and his spendthrift ways in the neighborhood of Los Angeles where most in the seventies displayed their status and wealth. Arial, was by his own admission, a terrible son. He disrespected his father, painful for the reader to see, until he began to research his background after having a son of his own. He received more attention on a brief article about his father than any of his writing had previously and began to see the impact his father had made upon the language community. Ariel begins to interview his father in depth and finds a remarkable story, while finding his family and himself in the history.
Yona was born into and grew up in the isolated community of Zakho island in Iragi Kurdistan. In the town of 27,000, the Jews numbered 1,471. This small community spoke Aramaic, the language of Jesus, which had lasted from 1000 B.C. possibly because the tribe was nomadic and not a threat to any other culture. Since they were everywhere the language spread and lasted through three empires breaking a linguist truth, that "language follows power". As Arabia grew in power, Arabic won out over Aramaic. In isolated places such as Zakho, the language remained into the twentieth century, astounding scholars. Yona is living expert in the linguist field on Aramaic, the original language.
Arial traces his father's history and family to Israel and back into Iraq in 2004 when travel in the country was difficult. He falls into a family mystery and into the spirit of his father's culture finding himself in his father's life and history. The book allows for the son's redemption giving us a personal story while weaving in the linguist tale of the Aramaic language. This is a tremendous read for a large number of library users, allowing us the personal and an historical view of an now extinct culture and language.
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left their native Iraq and a very small close community of Jewish Kurds, immigrated to Israel and as he grew up he found he needed the education the United States offered. He was considered an expert, even as an undergrad, because of his rare experience in his birth language. He was an international known professor who gave lectures and whose experience and expertise were in demand. He was an admired professor and a favorite among students.It is also the story of a son's repentence. Viewed through a son's eyes however, Yona was a backward, poorly dressed, poorly spoken old man who lived in the past. Ariel was embarrassed by his father's language, his odd habits, his broken down car and his spendthrift ways in the neighborhood of Los Angeles where most in the seventies displayed their status and wealth. Arial, was by his own admission, a terrible son. He disrespected his father, painful for the reader to see, until he began to research his background after having a son of his own. He received more attention on a brief article about his father than any of his writing had previously and began to see the impact his father had made upon the language community. Ariel begins to interview his father in depth and finds a remarkable story, while finding his family and himself in the history.
Yona was born into and grew up in the isolated community of Zakho island in Iragi Kurdistan. In the town of 27,000, the Jews numbered 1,471. This small community spoke Aramaic, the language of Jesus, which had lasted from 1000 B.C. possibly because the tribe was nomadic and not a threat to any other culture. Since they were everywhere the language spread and lasted through three empires breaking a linguist truth, that "language follows power". As Arabia grew in power, Arabic won out over Aramaic. In isolated places such as Zakho, the language remained into the twentieth century, astounding scholars. Yona is living expert in the linguist field on Aramaic, the original language.
Arial traces his father's history and family to Israel and back into Iraq in 2004 when travel in the country was difficult. He falls into a family mystery and into the spirit of his father's culture finding himself in his father's life and history. The book allows for the son's redemption giving us a personal story while weaving in the linguist tale of the Aramaic language. This is a tremendous read for a large number of library users, allowing us the personal and an historical view of an now extinct culture and language.
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LibraryThing member dudara
I recently received an ARC copy of My Father's Paradise, courtesy of Algonquin Books (Thanks Lindsey). The author, Ariel Sabah, is the son of a Kurdish Jewish immigrant to the United States, and this is the story of family and his heritage.
The story opens with the author's grandparents and their
The tale follows the family to Israel, where they encounter more prejudice, this time from their Jewish brethren. The Kurdish Jews are considered backwards, rural and superstitious by the recent European immigrants to Israel. Yona, however, is determined to better himself and works hard to obtain a university education. It is here that his interest in his native tongue, Aramaic is sparked, and he begins his lifelong career, working to document the language. Eventually, he moves to America to study for a Ph.D. where he marries and raises a family.
Yona never really returns to Israel, despite the wishes of his parents. He becomes an internationally acclaimed professor at UCLA, but his son, the author, is embarassed as a teenager by what he sees as his immigrant ways. As the author begins to raise his own family, he becomes interested in his own family's past and begins to research their history. The result is this fascinating and captivating tale.
Father and son return to Iraq and Zahko and tensions between them are eased. But the author becomes obsessed with the tale of his father's lost sister and this obsession, which his father refuses to shares, begins to drive a wedge between the newly enhanced relationship between father and son.
This was one book I found so hard to put down. The tale of the Kurdish Jews is largely unknown in history and this book serves to highlight a largely hitherto untold part of history. It is told with a personal touch, and it is heart touching to read about the author's story of discovery, both of his heritage and of himself. This is a powerful story and is bound to resonate with every reader.
The story opens with the author's grandparents and their
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life in Kurdistan. A Jewish community had existed in Iraq for many centuries, speaking a form of Aramaic (the language spoken by Jesus). This Jewish community existed harmoniously with their Iraqi neighbours, as they had done for centuries, but remained largely illiterate and isolated from the outside world. We meet the author's grandparents and learn the story of their marriage and the tale of their lost daughter Rifka. However, as the the tensions of the 20th century eventually filter through to the remote town of Zahko, where Yona (the author's father) and his parents live. In the face of rising racism and intolerance, the Jews being to leave Iraq, fleeing to the fledgling state of Israel. More than 120,000 Jews left Iraq, making it one of the largest, and least known, diasporas in history.The tale follows the family to Israel, where they encounter more prejudice, this time from their Jewish brethren. The Kurdish Jews are considered backwards, rural and superstitious by the recent European immigrants to Israel. Yona, however, is determined to better himself and works hard to obtain a university education. It is here that his interest in his native tongue, Aramaic is sparked, and he begins his lifelong career, working to document the language. Eventually, he moves to America to study for a Ph.D. where he marries and raises a family.
Yona never really returns to Israel, despite the wishes of his parents. He becomes an internationally acclaimed professor at UCLA, but his son, the author, is embarassed as a teenager by what he sees as his immigrant ways. As the author begins to raise his own family, he becomes interested in his own family's past and begins to research their history. The result is this fascinating and captivating tale.
Father and son return to Iraq and Zahko and tensions between them are eased. But the author becomes obsessed with the tale of his father's lost sister and this obsession, which his father refuses to shares, begins to drive a wedge between the newly enhanced relationship between father and son.
This was one book I found so hard to put down. The tale of the Kurdish Jews is largely unknown in history and this book serves to highlight a largely hitherto untold part of history. It is told with a personal touch, and it is heart touching to read about the author's story of discovery, both of his heritage and of himself. This is a powerful story and is bound to resonate with every reader.
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LibraryThing member littlebookworm
As a teen and young adult, Ariel Sabar always thought his father Yona was a bit strange. Yona had immigrated twice in his life, from Zakho in Iraq to Israel to the US. When Ariel had his own son, he realized the errors he had wrought and set about learning the story of his family’s past in
This was an excellent book. It reads like a novel at times, with bits of history and folklore intertwined with the Sabar family’s past. I couldn’t wait to get back to it when I wasn’t reading it, because I really wanted to know more about this fascinating family. I feel that there aren’t enough books that really center in on the Middle East and its vast changes that are accessible to ordinary people, but this book bridges the gap beautifully.
It also tells the universal story of the immigrant; searching for better opportunities and rarely finding them. I’ve read about this situation a lot with American immigrants. The only way I’d heard about this in respect to Israel before was through my Jewish friends at Brandeis University, some of whose parents and grandparents had had journeys similar to Yona’s. So not only is Sabar recording his family’s history, he is also chronicling that of an entire group of displaced persons, the Kurds. I was astounded by the attitude of other Jews in Israel to them; I thought Israel was the promised land and that all people were equal and welcomed there. It may be that way now, which is what modern Jews tell me, but it certainly wasn’t the case 50 years ago when Yona Sabar’s family immigrated there.
This book contains a story that is immersive, historical, and human. I definitely recommend it.
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Kurdish Iraq and Israel to help him reconnect with his father, an internationally renowned professor at UCLA, and preserve history. This book traces his family’s journey, starting with his grandmother, moving on to his father’s academic rise, and finishing with his own journey to Zakho.This was an excellent book. It reads like a novel at times, with bits of history and folklore intertwined with the Sabar family’s past. I couldn’t wait to get back to it when I wasn’t reading it, because I really wanted to know more about this fascinating family. I feel that there aren’t enough books that really center in on the Middle East and its vast changes that are accessible to ordinary people, but this book bridges the gap beautifully.
It also tells the universal story of the immigrant; searching for better opportunities and rarely finding them. I’ve read about this situation a lot with American immigrants. The only way I’d heard about this in respect to Israel before was through my Jewish friends at Brandeis University, some of whose parents and grandparents had had journeys similar to Yona’s. So not only is Sabar recording his family’s history, he is also chronicling that of an entire group of displaced persons, the Kurds. I was astounded by the attitude of other Jews in Israel to them; I thought Israel was the promised land and that all people were equal and welcomed there. It may be that way now, which is what modern Jews tell me, but it certainly wasn’t the case 50 years ago when Yona Sabar’s family immigrated there.
This book contains a story that is immersive, historical, and human. I definitely recommend it.
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LibraryThing member Risa15
Ariel Sabar was a rebellious son who did not appreciate his father Yona's Kurdish background, Ariel wanted to fit in the go go life of LA so he lived a distant life from his father growing up.. It was not until the birth of Ariel's son that he became interested in his father's unusual
.Life was good in Zako for his father's family until Israel became a state and the Jews there were forced to leave because of antagonism from the Iraqi regime. Even though the Moslems, Christians and Jews had a friendly coexistence, there was too much turmoil and resentment of the Jews for them to continue to be safe.
In Israel, they learned to their dismay, that Kurdish Jews were considered to be ignorant and superstitious. Even though Ariel's grandfather arrived in Israel with a substantial sum of money, he lost it through unwise business decisions. Yona had to work during the day and go to school at night. When his professor discovered he was fluent in Neo Aramaic, opportunities opened up for him and he was granted a scholarship at Yale, eventually becoming a professor of Aramaic and Hebrew at UCLA. Yona did visit Zako again but the town was unrecognizable as it had changed so much. Another later trip with Ariel he found that it is now a large city, so unlike what existed during Yona's childhood
Although this is strictly not a biography as some passages are imagined and some characters are composites, this is a beautifully written story of a lost world and a son who finally realizes his father's worth. Highly recommended
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background.from his childhood in Kurdish Zako, his life in Israel and his eventual education at Yale and then ending up as a professor at UCLA..Life was good in Zako for his father's family until Israel became a state and the Jews there were forced to leave because of antagonism from the Iraqi regime. Even though the Moslems, Christians and Jews had a friendly coexistence, there was too much turmoil and resentment of the Jews for them to continue to be safe.
In Israel, they learned to their dismay, that Kurdish Jews were considered to be ignorant and superstitious. Even though Ariel's grandfather arrived in Israel with a substantial sum of money, he lost it through unwise business decisions. Yona had to work during the day and go to school at night. When his professor discovered he was fluent in Neo Aramaic, opportunities opened up for him and he was granted a scholarship at Yale, eventually becoming a professor of Aramaic and Hebrew at UCLA. Yona did visit Zako again but the town was unrecognizable as it had changed so much. Another later trip with Ariel he found that it is now a large city, so unlike what existed during Yona's childhood
Although this is strictly not a biography as some passages are imagined and some characters are composites, this is a beautifully written story of a lost world and a son who finally realizes his father's worth. Highly recommended
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LibraryThing member JGoto
In his fascinating and extremely moving family history, Ariel Sabar introduces us to the Jews that lived for thousands of years in Kurdish Iraq. In an effort to understand and reconnect with the immigrant father he had mocked and distanced himself from when he was younger, journalist Ariel Sabar
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decided to reach into the past and uncover his family’s story. He begins his tale in the isolated village in Northern Iraq where Jews, Muslims, and Christians still spoke the ancient Aramaic language and lived together in peace, until the conflicts in the mid twentieth century forced the Jews to emigrate. From there he takes us to their new home in Israel, and then finally to California, where his father became a renown linguist and Aramaic scholar. Sabar’s book is not only full of history, but is also the emotional story of the members of his family trying to connect with one another as past and present collide. This is a wonderful book that I highly recommend Show Less
LibraryThing member jlelliott
Over a lifetime Ariel Sabar’s father has traveled from a remote enclave of ancient Judaism in Kurdistan to the shanty towns of burgeoning Israel and finally to the coasts of America. Along the way he has played a seminal part in preserving the dying language of his people, Aramaic. In typical
The Kurdish homeland of the lost tribe of Israel is the historical starting point of the story. The Sabar family (originally the Beh Sabagha family) are traders and cloth dyers, and Ariel Sabar’s father roams his small town with the perfect confidence that comes from being deeply enmeshed in a seemingly unshakeable social network. The book is worth reading if only for the depictions of Muslims, Christians, and Jews living in peace and mutual respect for generations in remote Kurdistan. The longstanding peace is shaken as larger Iraq responds to the creation of Israel, and eventually the Jews of the town move en masse to the young Jewish state, much to the sorrow of their neighbors.
Israel fails to be the promised land the Sabar family hoped for, and the trials of poverty are almost eclipsed by the prejudice and ridicule afforded these Middle Eastern Jews by their European brethren. This astonishing bias, documented with quotes from leading Israelites of the time, is another historical vignette that would individually make the book worthwhile. In an effort to avoid stigmatization, most Kurdish Jews attempt to distance themselves from the past and their native Aramaic. Ariel’s father takes the opposite route, stumbling into a niche as an academic linguist who is also a native speaker of a dying language. His profession eventually leads him to America, a place he finds lonely and lacking in simple human emotion. Although successful, he never regains the confidence of his boyhood in Kurdistan.
This story is told with really refreshing honesty, as Ariel freely admits his own faults and those of his relations. He does not judge nor mythify, and manages to convey a seemingly unbiased history while still evoking a real sense of warmth towards the various friends and relations that take part in his story. The writing is as clear and unembellished as the telling itself (there are a few editing mistakes, but this is an Early Review copy and I am sure they will be corrected before publication). Ariel’s story lacks a pat ending: there is no final ultimate absolution of the rift between father and son, no recovery of long lost family members, no transformational moments. Just a man hoping to preserve a dying thing, to teach his son to avoid the mistakes he feels he has made in life. I finished this book glad to have learned about Jewish Kurds and their experience in Israel, and honored to have been able to read this intimate story, which very much feels as if it was written not for the reading public but for the author and his loved ones.
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American teenage fashion, Ariel rejects his father and his father’s history in his attempt to assimilate into Southern California youth culture. Later, as an adult greeting his own newborn son into the world, Ariel awakens to the value of the past, to the stabilizing potential of a historical foundation dating back thousands of years. Rallying his skills as a professional journalist, Ariel sets out to document his family’s history for himself and his son, hoping to rekindle his relationship with his father along the way. This story of the troubled young first generation American grappling with cultural identity is quick becoming archetypal and Sabar’s story could easily wander into the territory of familiar platitudes. However the inspiring honesty, thorough reporting, and unique backdrop of this story allow it to sidestep these dangers. Sabar has written a fascinating and moving family story. The Kurdish homeland of the lost tribe of Israel is the historical starting point of the story. The Sabar family (originally the Beh Sabagha family) are traders and cloth dyers, and Ariel Sabar’s father roams his small town with the perfect confidence that comes from being deeply enmeshed in a seemingly unshakeable social network. The book is worth reading if only for the depictions of Muslims, Christians, and Jews living in peace and mutual respect for generations in remote Kurdistan. The longstanding peace is shaken as larger Iraq responds to the creation of Israel, and eventually the Jews of the town move en masse to the young Jewish state, much to the sorrow of their neighbors.
Israel fails to be the promised land the Sabar family hoped for, and the trials of poverty are almost eclipsed by the prejudice and ridicule afforded these Middle Eastern Jews by their European brethren. This astonishing bias, documented with quotes from leading Israelites of the time, is another historical vignette that would individually make the book worthwhile. In an effort to avoid stigmatization, most Kurdish Jews attempt to distance themselves from the past and their native Aramaic. Ariel’s father takes the opposite route, stumbling into a niche as an academic linguist who is also a native speaker of a dying language. His profession eventually leads him to America, a place he finds lonely and lacking in simple human emotion. Although successful, he never regains the confidence of his boyhood in Kurdistan.
This story is told with really refreshing honesty, as Ariel freely admits his own faults and those of his relations. He does not judge nor mythify, and manages to convey a seemingly unbiased history while still evoking a real sense of warmth towards the various friends and relations that take part in his story. The writing is as clear and unembellished as the telling itself (there are a few editing mistakes, but this is an Early Review copy and I am sure they will be corrected before publication). Ariel’s story lacks a pat ending: there is no final ultimate absolution of the rift between father and son, no recovery of long lost family members, no transformational moments. Just a man hoping to preserve a dying thing, to teach his son to avoid the mistakes he feels he has made in life. I finished this book glad to have learned about Jewish Kurds and their experience in Israel, and honored to have been able to read this intimate story, which very much feels as if it was written not for the reading public but for the author and his loved ones.
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LibraryThing member labfs39
What child has not been embarrassed by his parent at some point during his adolescence? A parent’s accent, love for country music, or penchant for Hawaiian shirts in December seem like flashing neon badges of distinction to a teenager’s desire for conformity. So it is with author Ariel Sabar, a
Growing up in Southern California, Ariel Sabar understood little of the burden his father felt as the link between a world that was nearly extinct and the twenty-first century. Writing this book, Ariel’s first, is an attempt to reach out to his father and to discover his own place in his family’s history. Despite the personal nature of his purpose, most of the book is written as a rather impersonal but fascinating story. With a plot that touches on current events in Iraq, the struggles of the Kurdish people, and the success of a modern-day immigrant to America, the reader is drawn into a unique and compelling story. Ariel’s background in journalism is apparent in his brief masterful sketches of place and character. The mind’s eye can picture each scene: Yona as a boy jumping from rooftop to rooftop; his mother, sitting unnoticed in the corner as her children eat at the table; the confusion of a new immigrant as he searches for his American welcoming committee. What was harder to see was the effect on the author of each new discovery about his family.
In the last chapters of My Father’s Paradise, Sabar touches on his motivations for writing the book, his reconciliation with failing to get the ultimate “Oprah” moment in his search for his missing aunt, and the role his young son plays in bring Ariel and his father together. But one is left with the feeling that the author’s adolescent bitterness is still coloring his relationship with his father and that from his “home” in Maine, he is still searching for his place in the world.
Overall, I found the depiction of the characters to be touching and real, the history to be compelling, and the glimpses into the study of linguistics to be illuminating. I also finished the book with a lingering indignation on Yona’s behalf (grow up already, Ariel!) and an unsatisfied desire to know what deeper insights the author might have shared.
[Ariel Sabar is now living in Washington, DC with his wife and two children and is covering the 2008 presidential campaign for the Christian Science Monitor.]
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product of Southern California cool, and his desire to disassociate himself with his decidedly un-cool father. Yona Sabar is a world expert on neo-Aramaic, an almost dead language, the driver of a Tercel, and his own barber. He is also the product of a lost world, a Jewish enclave in Kurdish Iraq. As an adult, Ariel’s slow-growing appreciation of his father’s accomplishments, and the birth of his own son, leads him on a journey of family exploration which ends where it began, the town of Zakho, in Northern Iraq.Growing up in Southern California, Ariel Sabar understood little of the burden his father felt as the link between a world that was nearly extinct and the twenty-first century. Writing this book, Ariel’s first, is an attempt to reach out to his father and to discover his own place in his family’s history. Despite the personal nature of his purpose, most of the book is written as a rather impersonal but fascinating story. With a plot that touches on current events in Iraq, the struggles of the Kurdish people, and the success of a modern-day immigrant to America, the reader is drawn into a unique and compelling story. Ariel’s background in journalism is apparent in his brief masterful sketches of place and character. The mind’s eye can picture each scene: Yona as a boy jumping from rooftop to rooftop; his mother, sitting unnoticed in the corner as her children eat at the table; the confusion of a new immigrant as he searches for his American welcoming committee. What was harder to see was the effect on the author of each new discovery about his family.
In the last chapters of My Father’s Paradise, Sabar touches on his motivations for writing the book, his reconciliation with failing to get the ultimate “Oprah” moment in his search for his missing aunt, and the role his young son plays in bring Ariel and his father together. But one is left with the feeling that the author’s adolescent bitterness is still coloring his relationship with his father and that from his “home” in Maine, he is still searching for his place in the world.
Overall, I found the depiction of the characters to be touching and real, the history to be compelling, and the glimpses into the study of linguistics to be illuminating. I also finished the book with a lingering indignation on Yona’s behalf (grow up already, Ariel!) and an unsatisfied desire to know what deeper insights the author might have shared.
[Ariel Sabar is now living in Washington, DC with his wife and two children and is covering the 2008 presidential campaign for the Christian Science Monitor.]
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LibraryThing member ForeignCircus
Though Ariel Sabar may regret that his relationship with his father was so contentious, readers have cause to rejoice because that fractured relationship led Sabar to pen this elegant tale of his father's life and language.
Yona Sabar, a Jewish Kurd, grew up speaking Aramaic, an ancient language now
Though the portions of the book dealing with Ariel himself were less compelling, the tales of Yona's early life in Kurdistan are hypnotic- I had a difficult time putting this book down. The writing is excellent and the character of Yona breathes throughout the book. The book is never technical about linguistics; the story of Yona's work is presented as I believe he experienced it- a treasure hunt generating excitement with each new clue.
Highly recommended!
Yona Sabar, a Jewish Kurd, grew up speaking Aramaic, an ancient language now
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all but lost. He is also a celebrated linguist who has worked tirelessly to document his language before it dies. This book traces that effort, weaving a colorful tapestry of Jewish life in Iraq, Kurdish life in Israel, and immigrant life in America.Though the portions of the book dealing with Ariel himself were less compelling, the tales of Yona's early life in Kurdistan are hypnotic- I had a difficult time putting this book down. The writing is excellent and the character of Yona breathes throughout the book. The book is never technical about linguistics; the story of Yona's work is presented as I believe he experienced it- a treasure hunt generating excitement with each new clue.
Highly recommended!
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LibraryThing member MarthaHuntley
The subtitle says it: A son's search for his Jewish past in Kurdish Iraq. My Father's Paradise is excellent on a number of levels -- as a family story, immigrant story, father-son tensions and reconciliations, religions living together in peace (or not) story, the search for our roots, the
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stabilization of our values, the value of the place we come from and the awareness and cost as well as joys of moving on, what we inherit and what we forge. Very well written, and certainly timely. Show Less
LibraryThing member ilovemycat1
Incredibly well written, moving and compelling book about the author's father- Yona Sabar, a linguistic professor at UCLA, whose roots and early life were in Kurdistan. Uprooted from Iraq in the early 1950's the family then settles in Israel, where prejudice and hard times prevail. Yona, through
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much, much hard work and study, is able to secure an education and winds up at Yale in the 1960's. The son, a skateboarding teenager, who was raised in Los Angeles and appeared ashamed of his immigrant father throughtout his teen years, begins to have a change of heart as an adult, and begins an incredible journey to document his father's life and those of his ancestors. A joy of a book and totally worthy of the awards and praise the author has won. Show Less
LibraryThing member FergusS
A wonderful book. Ariel Sabar tells the story of his Jewish family from their origins in isolated Kurdistan where their ancestors had been settled for thousands of years to their forced emigration - first to Israel, and then, through his father's prowess in Aramaic, to America. A story of the
By the quality of Sabar's observations and writing he is able to present honest assessments of all the players, including himself, in ways constantly touching and revealing. In the end he is able to reassess the meaning and value of his father's long and arduous labour at what was, for him, a mother tongue, but, for nearly all others, a language in its final death throes. No matter that it is called neo-Aramaic, it is the end of the ancient language of empires whose spread and dominance could be compared for westerners to ancient Greek or modern English, but to which both must as yet bow the knee of longevity and endurance.
For its human insight alone, the book is worth reading. As a student of the Bible, I was further fascinated by the thought of the Kurdish Jews as long survivors of the lost tribes of Israel, thrilled to think of Aramaic, once spoken by Jesus (albeit in an older form) still being used by ordinary people within my lifetime, and horrified at the low esteem of such survivors in the modern world.
My copy was a kind gift from a thoughtful friend, and I am glad to have received it.
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immigrant struggle, it is also, and more deeply, a story told simultaneously at two more levels - that of Ariel's overcoming of his long dissatisfaction with his father's backward looking person and discipline, and that of the language itself. By the quality of Sabar's observations and writing he is able to present honest assessments of all the players, including himself, in ways constantly touching and revealing. In the end he is able to reassess the meaning and value of his father's long and arduous labour at what was, for him, a mother tongue, but, for nearly all others, a language in its final death throes. No matter that it is called neo-Aramaic, it is the end of the ancient language of empires whose spread and dominance could be compared for westerners to ancient Greek or modern English, but to which both must as yet bow the knee of longevity and endurance.
For its human insight alone, the book is worth reading. As a student of the Bible, I was further fascinated by the thought of the Kurdish Jews as long survivors of the lost tribes of Israel, thrilled to think of Aramaic, once spoken by Jesus (albeit in an older form) still being used by ordinary people within my lifetime, and horrified at the low esteem of such survivors in the modern world.
My copy was a kind gift from a thoughtful friend, and I am glad to have received it.
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LibraryThing member suesbooks
I found this written in a very interesting, engaging style. Ariel wrote about his father's life. He was born in Kurdistan, emigrated to Israel, and then to the United States where he is a professor of Aramaic and Hebrew. I found this more a biography of his father than an autobiography of Ariel.
LibraryThing member LaBibliophille
Ariel Sabar was raised in Los Angeles, the son of an immigrant father and an upper middle class American mother. As a child, he was embarrassed by his father. Yona Sabar drove an old car, wore clothes that were, at best, unfashionable, and, in general, was confounded by modern American life. Yona
Despite attending a Jewish day school, Jewish summer camps, and regularly visiting relatives in Israel, Ariel wanted nothing more than to escape his Jewish family and, especially, his immigrant father. He attended college in New England, and made a life for himself there. He married, and worked as a journalist for the Providence Journal and then the Baltimore Sun.
Ariel eventually became curious about his father's past. How did this man, who was born in 1938 to a Jewish family in a tiny village in Iraqi Kurdistan, end up as a well-liked and distinguished professor at UCLA? And so begins the story of My Father's Paradise. This memoir is about the extraordinary life of Yona Sabar, but also of Ariel's personal journey to discover and honor his father.
In 1950, shortly before the Iraqi Jews were all allowed to renounce their citizenship and emigrate to Israel, Yona became the last boy to become a Bar Mitzvah in Zakho, not far from the Turkish border. His family (then known as Sabagha) left with others of their village and were settled by the Israelis in a squalid camp in Jerusalem. They speak Aramaic, as the Kurdish Jews had for centuries. The Kurds are discriminated against in Israel, and the family finds life difficult and confusing.
As the eldest child, Yona works his way through high school, then Hebrew University. He hopes to become a physician, but his grades are not good enough. An encounter with a professor of linguistics sets him on his life's path-to record and preserve the oral Aramaic language of his ancestors.
This memoir is detailed, personal and moving. Yona's story is a remarkable one, a combination of serendipity, perseverance, and love of family and culture. It was not always a compelling read, but is is definitely worthwhile.
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was a professor of Semitic languages at UCLA; most of the parents of Ariel's classmates were in the entertainment business.Despite attending a Jewish day school, Jewish summer camps, and regularly visiting relatives in Israel, Ariel wanted nothing more than to escape his Jewish family and, especially, his immigrant father. He attended college in New England, and made a life for himself there. He married, and worked as a journalist for the Providence Journal and then the Baltimore Sun.
Ariel eventually became curious about his father's past. How did this man, who was born in 1938 to a Jewish family in a tiny village in Iraqi Kurdistan, end up as a well-liked and distinguished professor at UCLA? And so begins the story of My Father's Paradise. This memoir is about the extraordinary life of Yona Sabar, but also of Ariel's personal journey to discover and honor his father.
In 1950, shortly before the Iraqi Jews were all allowed to renounce their citizenship and emigrate to Israel, Yona became the last boy to become a Bar Mitzvah in Zakho, not far from the Turkish border. His family (then known as Sabagha) left with others of their village and were settled by the Israelis in a squalid camp in Jerusalem. They speak Aramaic, as the Kurdish Jews had for centuries. The Kurds are discriminated against in Israel, and the family finds life difficult and confusing.
As the eldest child, Yona works his way through high school, then Hebrew University. He hopes to become a physician, but his grades are not good enough. An encounter with a professor of linguistics sets him on his life's path-to record and preserve the oral Aramaic language of his ancestors.
This memoir is detailed, personal and moving. Yona's story is a remarkable one, a combination of serendipity, perseverance, and love of family and culture. It was not always a compelling read, but is is definitely worthwhile.
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LibraryThing member Kplatypus
Mr. Sabar, a child of '80s Los Angeles, grew up dismissing his immigrant father. Between an unwillingness to spend money on luxuries like eating out, a fashion sense still inspired by his Kurdish childhood, and an accent that never quite faded, Mr. Sabar's father simply seemed to come from a world
The story of the Kurdish Jews is one that I knew nothing about but this book spoke to me nonetheless. The author intersperses stories about his family, beginning with his grandparents' childhoods, with modern-day information about his father, a renowned scholar of Aramaic. His deft storytelling style brings the stories of these people to life, along with his personal interest in them. As he describes his father leaping across the rooftops of Zakho, the village where the family lived in Iraq, the reader has a clear image of this young boy, so unfamiliar in some ways, yet so familiar in others- he may speak a language most of us think of as long dead, but he still fights with his friends over possession of a shiny trinket. It's clear, as the story of the author's father progressed through starts and stops, that the author himself has gained a profound respect for a man that suffered much and worked very hard to get to where he is today.
My Father's Paradise is an excellent book, for anyone, really. It's not just about the history of Kurdish Jews, or even of the author's family, but rather a exploration of family dynamics. How they change, how they change us, and how they continue to influence us long after they're gone. You may learn something about an oft-forgotten people, or about yourself.
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so foreign to the author's as to be incomprehensible. Eventually, though, the author came to wonder what his father's story really was and, fortunately for us, to ask questions. From his inquiry came this book, a deeply personal yet widely accessible account of the author's family's move from a village in Kurdish Iraq to the emigrant camps of Israel to America.The story of the Kurdish Jews is one that I knew nothing about but this book spoke to me nonetheless. The author intersperses stories about his family, beginning with his grandparents' childhoods, with modern-day information about his father, a renowned scholar of Aramaic. His deft storytelling style brings the stories of these people to life, along with his personal interest in them. As he describes his father leaping across the rooftops of Zakho, the village where the family lived in Iraq, the reader has a clear image of this young boy, so unfamiliar in some ways, yet so familiar in others- he may speak a language most of us think of as long dead, but he still fights with his friends over possession of a shiny trinket. It's clear, as the story of the author's father progressed through starts and stops, that the author himself has gained a profound respect for a man that suffered much and worked very hard to get to where he is today.
My Father's Paradise is an excellent book, for anyone, really. It's not just about the history of Kurdish Jews, or even of the author's family, but rather a exploration of family dynamics. How they change, how they change us, and how they continue to influence us long after they're gone. You may learn something about an oft-forgotten people, or about yourself.
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LibraryThing member simchaboston
A compelling narrative that serves both to illuminate the world and experience of Iraqi Kurdish Jews, and the journey of one particular one (the author's father) from Kurdistan to Israel to Los Angeles, where he becomes an authority on the disappearing language of his boyhood. Ariel Sabar writes
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clearly and evocatively, whether it's outlining the complicated history of the region or reenacting scenes from his grandparents' and parents' lives. One only wishes that all sons and daughters could do as well with capturing the stories of the generations that came before. Show Less
LibraryThing member klburnside
This book tells the story of the author, Ariel Sabar, and his father, Yona. The story begins when Yona is a Jewish boy growing up in Kurdish Iraq in the early twentieth century, a time when the Muslims, Christians, and Jews of the region lived in relative harmony. When religious tensions began to
I was really fascinated by the part of the book that took place in Israel. I had never thought much about the difficulties that were encountered as the country’s population grew so quickly with immigrants from so many different regions and nationalities. Yona and his family struggled to make their way in a society dominated by European Jews, facing the stereotypes and prejudices against Kurdish Jews and Middle Eastern Jews in general.
I was very impressed by the Ariel’s personal journey and the way his relationship with his father grew. He spent his teenage years and young adulthood embarrassed by his father, trying to distance himself from his father’s heritage and become a full fledged American. When he has a son of his own, he begins to realize the importance of family legacy, and starts a journey to understand his father’s past. Ariel and Yona travel to Israel and Iraq together to gain insight into the past.
The book was very well balanced between history, politics, and personal narrative. I learned a lot about the history and politics of the time and region. The book is by no means overly political or religious, but there are definitely valuable insights into both. The personal story was very well-written and heartfelt. The author did an excellent job depicting himself, his father and their relationship. I was in tears by the end of the book seeing how their relationship progressed. I debated between four and five stars. I would definitely recommend this book.
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escalate in the Middle East mid-century, teenaged Yona and his family emigrate to Israel, thus forfeiting their Iraqi citizenship. Yona eventually moves to the United States and becomes a leading scholar at UCLA in Aramaic, his native language. I was really fascinated by the part of the book that took place in Israel. I had never thought much about the difficulties that were encountered as the country’s population grew so quickly with immigrants from so many different regions and nationalities. Yona and his family struggled to make their way in a society dominated by European Jews, facing the stereotypes and prejudices against Kurdish Jews and Middle Eastern Jews in general.
I was very impressed by the Ariel’s personal journey and the way his relationship with his father grew. He spent his teenage years and young adulthood embarrassed by his father, trying to distance himself from his father’s heritage and become a full fledged American. When he has a son of his own, he begins to realize the importance of family legacy, and starts a journey to understand his father’s past. Ariel and Yona travel to Israel and Iraq together to gain insight into the past.
The book was very well balanced between history, politics, and personal narrative. I learned a lot about the history and politics of the time and region. The book is by no means overly political or religious, but there are definitely valuable insights into both. The personal story was very well-written and heartfelt. The author did an excellent job depicting himself, his father and their relationship. I was in tears by the end of the book seeing how their relationship progressed. I debated between four and five stars. I would definitely recommend this book.
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LibraryThing member Miela
I know that the term "reads like fiction" is vastly overused in descriptions of memoirs, however, I feel that Sabar's work merits its use. Along with being the history of a cultural group that I knew little about, it is also a very personal story of a family and their struggles in three countries.
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Highly recommended. Show Less
ISBN
1565124901 / 9781565124905